• Publisher: 2K Games
  • Release Date: Oct 19, 2005
Metascore
74 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 31 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 31
  2. Negative: 0 out of 31
  1. Every bit as fast and furious as the original, this game kicked my ass.
  2. The mixture of zany antics and storyline coupled with an outrageous cast of characters makes Serious Sam 2 a must play for FPS fans.
  3. Sam II's wild, random charm makes for a twisted Duke Nukem meets Alice in Wonderland sort of roller coaster ride-a perfect change of pace from the scads of grim 'n' gritty shooters steeped in WWII war zones and dystopian postapocalyptic futures. Just don't take it too seriously, OK?
  4. Add in the co-op mode, and it comes down to the fact that if you've ever liked any first-person shooter, you should pick up Serious Sam II.
  5. I had almost forgotten how much fun I had playing the original Serious Sam, but it only took one level full of laughter and insane action to quickly remember why Sam is still the best FPS game in its class since the original Doom.
  6. I've enjoyed Serious Sam 2 as much as I did the first release and its expansion. In some ways, it's better, I certainly laughed more at the corny humor and references to other 3D shooters ("I love collecting big guns," Sam quips on Planet Kleer. "It looks so … UNREAL.")
  7. A fun little game. Unfortunately, in the time that passed since the original game it has lost some its appeal. Either that or we expect more from a fully priced game.
  8. Fun non-stop action. Sound effects are too tame and the weapons are not very original. Not very good as single player, but the co-op online game rocks. [Dec 2005]
  9. Still, Sam nails exactly what it's aiming to do, which is to throw scores of enemies at you in some of the most frantic firefights you'll ever experience.
  10. 82
    Fans of old school action games that focus exclusively on shooting down wave after wave of enemies will definitely find that this game delivers. Still, the endless fragfest that is Serious Sam II occasionally runs the risk of becoming monotonous.
  11. Like its predecessor, Serious Sam 2 is a fun and mindless romp, but the experience does get a little redundant.
  12. Serious Sam II is a handful. It may be more action than you bargained for. If you're not interested in the online mode then rent it first but be warned you may not finish it in one weekend.
  13. It's not failing to reach dizzying heights of sophistication or refinement; it's just going straight for the jugular and makes no excuses for doing that – so it can't really be criticized for not being sophisticated or refined as a result.
  14. 80
    A game that aspires to be big, loud, obnoxious, and fun, and it succeeds. Much like the original, there's virtually no depth here, but the focus on pure, unadulterated explosions is the perfect alternative to the heavy-handed, dramatic shooters we've seen lately.
  15. After a while, slaughtering endless waves of enemies gets a bit tiresome. Still, it's a fun way to let off a little steam, and it doesn't take itself too seriously. [Nov 2005, p.148]
  16. It's not quite the Serious Sam that you've known and love, although there are plenty of great moments. [Holiday 2005, p.76]
  17. Unfortunately, while the game has heart, it just doesn't have the goods.
  18. Few other FPS titles can match the intensity of this nitrous-charged shooting gallery, but plenty of them offer the kind of less that feels like much, much more. [Nov 2005, p.104]
  19. It's hard not to find at least some love for a game which thinks (for example) it's a good idea to put a crocodile in a Croatian jersey, hide it in a level and provide a CROcodile secret bonus.
  20. 70
    There isn't much to this game at all. Just grab a weapon and shoot stuff endlessly.
  21. Unfortunately, sheer numbers alone are just not enough to set this apart from the competition. [Nov 2005, p.90]
  22. If you require hollandaise with your FPS's, you'll be disappointed with its straightforward gameplay, but it's still an unpretentious delight in small doses, and it's replayable enough to stay on your hard drive for a little while.
  23. A fun and frenzied shooting romp, but -- as a longtime fan of the franchise -- beneath my expectations.
  24. 70
    It's essentially the same game in a prettier engine, mowing down waves and waves of enemies with the all-too-infrequent vehicle sequence or boss battle to break things up.
  25. Serious Sam II has a lot of levels and a few good laughs, but its simple shooting action is less likely to get your adrenaline pumping as it is to make you go numb.
  26. Quite frankly it's an insult to have to pay 35 quid for something that starts getting irksome in under half a day and is only genuinely entertaining in 20-minute bursts. Mindlessly fun and manically intense it is, innovative and essential it seriously isn't. [PC Zone]
  27. It's to Croteam's credit that Serious Sam II manages to stay interesting for as long as it does, thanks to the weird enemy design and tight levels keeping the pace from slacking. [Dec 2005, p.112]
  28. Nothing but a serious disappointment... It just about manages to cover all the criteria but nothing feels as though Croteam have stretched the barrel – in many cases they feel surprisingly weaker then its predecessor.
  29. Admittedly, the assorted firepower offers little excitement, but the experience is convincingly upbeat thanks to the game's droll sense of humour.
  30. The problems with Sam have nothing to do with the bad guys; there's a lot of them, and they're all weird. [Jan 2006, p.42]
  31. The first Serious Sam was tongue-in-cheek but this sequel crosses the line into obnoxiousness.
User Score

Mixed or average reviews- based on 38 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 13
  2. Negative: 1 out of 13
  1. Eon
    10
    [Real score 92/100] It has some things that I think game industrys is seriously lacking, like creative level design and lots of humor. This is game is so serious it kept me laughing or smiling throughout entire playthrough. Gameplay may seem monotonous, but who cares if you are having so much fun. It kept reminding me of Psychonauts with it's humor. Recommended for everyone that don't take games too seriously. Full Review »
  2. LukeK.
    4
    Fun old time game, but thats just it its time for somethin new.
  3. I got this game after having played First Encounter, Second Encounter, and then Serious Sam 3 BFE in that order. I'd watched youtube videos of gameplay and my first impression was that it looked silly, stupid and easy, and wasn't worth my time. But then there was a steam sale and I picked it up for 3.5 bucks and thought: what the hell, I wouldn't be a true fan unless I'd played every game. The result startled me. I found this game really fun, and very true to the Serious Sam formula with a few additions. The game looks great, almost as good as HD, but what it lacked in the minor graphics department it made up in design and color. There's twice the variety of enemies in SS2 vs other titles, and also many more locations which keeps things interesting and fresh. The difficulty is what you'd expect from a Serious Sam game, however it is a touch easier, so I recommend bumping up the difficulty one more notch than what you are used to. There's a life system, which i assume is left over from consoles, but ignore it and use the traditional quick save and quick load feature that the PC version has. The jokes are very hit and miss. Some are laughable, and some don't even make sense. Yes the game is very silly if you watch the cutscenes, and a lot of the enemies have silly designs like clowns, footballers and witches, but these are very easy to look past if you want to, or you could embrace and enjoy the silliness, but you quickly forget it anyway when being attacked by 50 units at once. The levels are shorter, approx 25mins per level as opposed to the hour long grinds of the originals, but there's also a lot more of them and in total the single player campaign is a few hours longer than originals. The levels are also smaller, with less space to run, and there's a lack of those iconic vast battlefields, however this is balanced by your character running slower than in the original games. Wrapping things up, Serious Sam 2 is an underrated and unappreciated classic that is very much worthy of the franchise and should be played by all those that loves things Serious Sam. It's louder, it's more colorful, it's sillier, but it still packs plenty of punch and kicks your ass. Go play now,k? Full Review »